If there’s one thing you want a Skoda Superb to be, it’s roomy. Rest assured, this one is exactly that. By our measurements, typical rear leg room has increased by 65mm over the outgoing model – already a very spacious car.
Headroom is generous in both rows, too, while large side windows make for a real sense of space, as well as outstanding visibility.
Boot dimensions have remained more or less constant, which is to say very big. As befits a Skoda, the boot has plenty of pop-out hooks and bins, and there are two levers to fold the rear seats down. Annoyingly, they don’t fold perfectly flat unless you spec the £295 variable boot floor. There’s more space under the floor, enough for a spacesaver spare wheel, which is a £185 option.
In the iV hybrid version, boot space is cut down from 690 litres under the roller cover to 510-; which sounds like a huge sacrifice. But in practice, it’s only a higher loadbay floor that you have to put up with, which is at least level and even and ends up running almost flush with the folded rear seatbacks so as not to cause problems when loading longer items. You lose most of the under-floor storage of other derivatives too, as well as any loadbay floor height configurability. Even so, it’s not the most unpalatable practicality compromise, and plenty of usable, accessible cargo space is left.
The fact that a Skoda estate is very practical won’t surprise anybody, of course. What’s arguably more impressive is what a soothing place the front cabin of the Superb is. The outgoing car already compared favourably with rivals in terms of interior material quality, even if the design was a tad plain. The new one balances classic values with modern technology like few other cars.
There’s a 13in multimedia screen whatever the trim level. While the overall button count is down, Skoda has shunned the minimalist iPad-on-a-plank route to infotainment integration in favour of a flowing design with wood-effect trim strips, elegant door handles and an almost art deco full-width vent.
Sportline variants, meanwhile, get racier accoutrements inside, including a sports steering wheel, Alcantara-like suede on the dashboard and door handles, and sports seats. It feels upmarket and yet still characteristically straighforward and robust, like a modern Skoda should.
Quite a few functions are controlled through the touchscreen, but in its latest iteration, it works quickly and logically, and it is complemented by the Superb’s new ‘smart dials’. The three physical dials can all be pressed to change their function, which is displayed on a small screen within each one. The outer ones control HVAC temperature and the heated and ventilated seats, while the central pod can control the fan speed, navigation zoom, drive mode, audio volume and more.
It’s a brilliantly simple yet tactile and intuitive system. If we have any criticism of the interior, it’s that the dials and the screen feel slightly flimsy and wobbly.
Rear passengers won’t feel like they are in second class, because the same materials quality is apparent here, and there are two USB ports, a climate control panel and, on SE L trim, an armrest with an integrated tablet holder.
Skoda hasn’t forgotten the basics, either. With the automatic gear selector having moved to the steering column, and no manual gearboxes, the centre console is freed up to provide storage. There’s plenty of space, naturally, and everything can be hidden from view by two shutters. The armrest cubby is big, too, and contains various movable trays and bins for things like glasses, and a useful felt-covered bar that you can use to clean smudgey fingerprints off the screen with (Kodiaqs come with one of these also).